Photo: Kenneth C. Zirkel · CC BY-SA 4.0Middletown has higher household incomes than 78% of U.S. towns
Transit is limited for a town this walkable: about 4.0 trips an hour stop near the typical resident at the evening peak, against 19.2 in Providence. Poverty touches 8.5% of residents (Rhode Island 11.2%). For jobs and income Middletown is better than 61% of U.S. towns (B); for walkability it is more walkable than 90% of U.S. towns (A).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
What stands out about work in Middletown
Middletown is where the jobs are
Middletown has 11,375 jobs, 1.7 for every working resident. Day and night ↓
A lot of Middletown works one town over
26% of working residents work in a town that borders Middletown: Newport (20%) and Portsmouth (6%). Next door ↓
Commutes from Middletown are quick
The average trip to work takes 20 minutes, against 26 across Rhode Island. That’s about 46 hours a year less on the road than the typical Rhode Island worker. Time on the road ↓
Written from the Census figures on this page. Commute flows, distances and jobs are Census LEHD 2023, primary jobs only (the self-employed aren’t counted); commute time and working from home are from the Census American Community Survey.
Income, poverty and work: Middletown’s grade explained
Household income holds Middletown’s grade up ($101,948, U.S. $80,734); unemployment pulls it down (6.0%, U.S. 5.2%). It also does well on the poverty rate and job access by car.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Middletown could be anywhere from B− to A−.
The workday shuffle in and out of Middletown
On a workday 5,051 residents head out to work, 1,745 work right here, and 9,630 people come in from elsewhere.
About 21,000 people are in Middletown on a workday afternoon, 28% more than live here.
1.7 jobs for every working resident, so more people commute in than out.
Workday population = residents − those who work elsewhere + those who come in (the Census “commuter-adjusted” method). Residents: Census survey; commuters: LEHD 2023, primary jobs.
Getting to work from Middletown takes about 20 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 6.4 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Middletown workers work from home, vs 13% across Rhode Island. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 7,449 commuters (the 11% who work from home are left out). Across Rhode Island: 83% drive alone, 2% take transit; U.S.: 81% and 4%. Census ACS 2020–24.
From the Census survey of workers who don’t work from home.
Where the people who work in Middletown live
Where Middletown clocks in
20% of workers
6% of workers
6% of workersLines run between town centers. The top 10 towns each way; “Everywhere else” is the rest, including other states.
A thicker line means more commuters. Switch between where residents work and where the people who work here live.
65% of the jobs in Middletown pay over $3,333 a month
11,375 jobs are based in Middletown.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Middletown, 2013 → 2023: 9,589 → 11,375. Big swings can come from how a large employer reports its locations, not only from real openings or closings.
Primary jobs covered by unemployment insurance (not the self-employed). Pay is monthly earnings. LEHD 2023.
Here is what they are, next to the jobs Middletown’s own residents hold wherever they work.
The distance from Middletown to work
Straight-line distance from each worker’s home block to their main job’s block. LEHD 2023.
Every working resident’s trip, home to work, as the crow flies. Roads add to it, so real drives run longer.
Middletown is easy on foot, hard by bus
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 8,357 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 50% of residents live within a ¾-mile walk of a bus or train stop, 15% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about 4.0 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 80% of the 9,825 U.S. towns with transit data.
Transit at the evening rush trips an hour stopping within ¼ mile of the typical resident, EPA 2020
Households without a car (shown, not graded). 6.2% of Middletown households have no vehicle (Rhode Island 9.1%, U.S. 8.4%). 1% of Middletown’s commuters take a bus or train.
Middletown places 1,007th of 1,888 on jobs and income among U.S. towns of 12,000 to 22,000
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Plain Township OH | 13,257 | $219K | 2.1% | 0.8% | 10% | A+ |
| 2 | Rogers MN | 15,606 | $159K | 1.9% | 1.2% | 10% | A+ |
| 3 | Trophy Club TX | 13,695 | $201K | 2.1% | 2.0% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 111 | Barrington RI | 16,961 | $153K | 4.5% | 2.6% | 11% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 171 | East Greenwich RI | 14,790 | $177K | 4.7% | 2.8% | 12% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 192 | North Smithfield RI | 12,990 | $109K | 4.8% | 2.5% | 9% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 1,005 | Sauk Rapids MN | 13,768 | $72K | 7.0% | 4.4% | 11% | B |
| 1,006 | Poulsbo WA | 12,749 | $116K | 9.3% | 3.7% | 15% | B |
| 1,007 | Middletown RI | 16,502 | $102K | 8.5% | 6.0% | 26% | B |
| 1,008 | Franklin Park IL | 18,045 | $77K | 9.4% | 6.1% | 7% | B |
| 1,009 | Lawrenceburg KY | 12,329 | $66K | 12.0% | 1.8% | 15% | B |
| … | |||||||
| 1,888 | Douglas AZ | 16,038 | $42K | 27.8% | 12.3% | 29% | D− |
Census ACS 2020–24 (income, poverty, unemployment), Census LEHD (work in town), TownRatings Jobs & income grades. Each town links to its Work & commute page.
Ranked on the Jobs & income grade: the towns either side of Middletown, the top three, the last and three more from Rhode Island.
Bordering towns draw 26% of Middletown’s workers
The biggest share goes to Newport (20%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Middletown workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Middletown | – | B | A | 20 min | $101,948 |
| Portsmouth | 6% | A | B+ | 23 min | $117,467 |
| Newport | 20% | C+ | A+ | 19 min | $86,313 |
| Jamestown | under 2% | A− | A | 26 min | $140,625 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Middletown’s workers. Tap a town to see its commute.
What this data can and can’t tell you
- Two sources, two years. Trips, distances and jobs based here: Census LEHD 2023, primary jobs, where the employer reports them. Income, poverty, unemployment, commute time and how people travel: Census ACS 2020–24 averages.
- Straight lines, older transit. Miles are as the crow flies. EPA’s walkability and transit files use 2017–20 inputs.
Jobs and commuting in Middletown: questions
What is the median household income in Middletown?
$101,948 (±$6,260) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $87,796 across Rhode Island and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Middletown?
8.5%, against 11.2% across Rhode Island and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Middletown?
20 minutes each way on average, against 26 across Rhode Island and 26 nationally. 11% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Middletown work?
26% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Newport (20%, 4 mi), Portsmouth (6%, 8 mi), Providence (6%, 22 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Middletown walkable?
Middletown is more walkable than 90% of U.S. towns (Walkability A): an EPA walkability index of 10.9 out of 20, and 7% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Middletown without a car?
1% of commuters take transit and 6% of households have no car. 15% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Middletown, from the people who make the trip.
More of Middletown
Flows, distances and jobs: U.S. Census Bureau, LEHD Origin-Destination Employment Statistics (LODES 8), 2023, primary jobs. Commute time, working from home and working out of state: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates. Distances are straight lines between home and work; real drives run longer. Walkability index, job access and transit service: U.S. EPA Smart Location Database. The two grades are our own summaries of these figures, not official ratings.